confident

adjective

con·fi·dent | \ ˈkän-fə-dənt

, -ˌdent \

Essential Meaning of confident

1 : having a feeling or belief that you can do something well or succeed at something : having confidence The class made me more confident (about myself). a confident young businesswoman See More ExamplesI am confident about my ability to do the job. The players seem more relaxed and confident this season. He has become more confident in his Spanish-speaking skills.Hide

2 : showing that you have confidence a confident smile They have a confident air about them. His voice sounded confident.

3 : certain that something will happen or that something is true We are confident that conditions will improve soon. He seemed confident of success. [=sure that he would succeed]

Full Definition of confident

1 : full of conviction : certain confident of success confident that conditions will improve

2 : having or showing assurance and self-reliance a confident young businessman a confident manner

3 obsolete : trustful, confiding

Other Words from confident Synonyms & Antonyms Is it confident or confidant? (Or is it confidante?) More Example Sentences Learn More About confident

Is it confident or confidant? (Or is it confidante?)

If you find yourself unsure whether you should choose confident or confidant don’t feel bad; confidant comes to English from the French word confident, and when the word first entered our language it was often spelled that way, rather than as confidant. The difference is quite simple: confidant is a noun (meaning "a person in whom you confide things"), and confident is an adjective (defined as “having confidence”). You may well be confident in your confidant, but you would not be confidant in your confident. Although this distinction has not always been observed by writers, confidante is generally used for a female confidant. The word confidant is more frequently used to describe a man, but it may be applied to either gender.

Examples of confident in a Sentence

I am confident about my ability to do the job. The players seem more relaxed and confident this season. He has become more confident in his Spanish-speaking skills. They have a confident air about them. We are confident that conditions will improve soon.

Recent Examples on the Web But the data have since improved enough that Zaitchik feels confident saying that weather influences COVID transmission in a statistically significant way. — Rachel Gutman, The Atlantic, 20 Nov. 2021 China is a confident power with significant resources. — Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 20 Nov. 2021 With this economic progress has come the creation of a new Chinese society, more open, more ambitious and confident of its place in the world. — Fareed Zakaria, CNN, 20 Nov. 2021 During their dominant defensive stretch, the Vikings grew more and more confident that one goal would be enough to bring home another win. — Glenn Graham, baltimoresun.com, 19 Nov. 2021 This is pretty confident shooting: 𝐎𝐂𝐇𝐎 came to play!!! — Andy Larsen, The Salt Lake Tribune, 18 Nov. 2021 Kolbert expertly mixes travelogue, science reporting and explanatory journalism, all with the authority of a writer confident enough to acknowledge ambiguity. — Washington Post, 18 Nov. 2021 This is an all-consuming task: to bring up confident, successful Black girls in a world that is determined to undervalue and underestimate them. — New York Times, 18 Nov. 2021 His Instagram account showed a confident, fashionable young man with a penchant for world travel, scuba diving in one post and riding a camel in another. — Will Evans, Wired, 18 Nov. 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'confident.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.